Holding Hands
by OnlyTheInevitable
Summary: Mulder finally asks out Scully in classic Mulder style. Based on the Tumblr prompt "Mulder and Scully holding hands romantically for the first time." MSR Fluff.


**I got an anonymous request on Tumblr that said "i was wondering if you could write a fic where msr hold hands romantically for the first time? So this is me taking a shot at it. Also, I absolutely take prompts! I may be slow at getting to them, but I enjoy it as a writing exercise to get me to try new things!**

It was perfect. Well, perfect for them.

Scully had no doubt in her mind that Mulder was a sweet and thoughtful man. He may be a bit scatterbrained, he may celebrate her birthday in dog years, but he would go to the ends of the earth to help her. That wasn't even a hyperbolic idiom in their relationship, he _actually_ went to an end of the earth for her. Knowing them, they'd probably make it to the North Pole in due time, then they'd have it all covered.

She knew he was sweet, so she didn't know why his method of asking her out came as such a surprise. This moment was as inevitable as the sun rising tomorrow.

He called her earlier that night in a flustered ramble, saying he found an X-File that was extremely important and needed their immediate attention. It was six p.m. on a Friday, and all of her instincts told her to ignore it. She wanted to tell him to enjoy his weekend and save it for Monday, but she couldn't ignore the trace of anxiety and fear in his voice where the excitement and enthusiasm usually were. She told him to tell her about it, and he said he'd rather do it in person.

She smiled to herself when she heard a knock on the door no more than two minutes later. He must've been calling her from his car, to make sure she was home and so he could drive away if she said no. It was cute. She padded over to the door and opened it, a little taken aback by what she saw; Mulder was standing before her, hair immaculate, smelling of the cologne she got him for Christmas. He was wearing his trench coat, but it was completely covering his body as he clutched a file in a white knuckled grip.

"Mulder, come in, what's wrong?" she asked, equal parts confused and concerned.

"Um, I think you should read over the file and tell me if it's worth investigating," he blurted, all but shoving the case file at her.

She thought that was odd, he never asked her opinion as to whether a case was worth investigating or not. She didn't know what to make of his behavior, so she put on her glasses and motioned for him to follow her to the table. She sat down, noting he looked rigid as a statue across from her.

Her confusion didn't dissipate when she opened the file.

 _Memorandum_

 _To: Dana Katherine Scully_

 _From: Fox William Mulder_

She looked up at him and asked, "Mulder, what is this?"

He couldn't meet her eye for more than a second, and instead resigned to playing with his hands. "Please read it all the way through first." He looked so vulnerable and she started to fear the worst, that is, until she resumed reading.

 _Date: Tonight at 7pm._

 _Subject: Dinner_

 _ALL INFORMATION CONTAINED HEREIN IS CLASSIFIED AND TRUE._

 _Synopsis: On March 6th, 1992, Special Agent Dana Katherine Scully was assigned to the X-Files. Her assignment was to debunk the work of Special Agent Fox Mulder, but, instead, she made herself an integral part of the small basement department. Now, The X-Files and her partner simply could not function without her there. They have gone through more together than any pair of people should ever have to._

She still had no idea what all this was about, but a stupid smile was already creeping on her face. She just saw him an hour ago leaving work and she had no idea this was coming.

 _Results: As time has passed, the connection between Agents Mulder and Scully has evolved from partners to friends to most trusted confidants. However, Agent Mulder's feelings can no longer be repressed and he wants it to be known that he is unabashedly enamoured by Agent Scully. He always has been._

Out of her peripheral, she saw him look at her when she gasped. She read it over twice just to make sure she read it right. Then a third to make sure she didn't miss anything. Then a fourth because it was what she'd wanted to know for so many years. She repressed reading a fifth time because she could sense his nerves were palpable.

 _Conclusion: In an attempt to investigate if the feeling is mutual, Agent Mulder will attempt to take Agent Scully on a date. If she says agrees, that is._

 _Addendum: If she does not want to pursue this, there will be no hard feelings. This X-File will not be investigated and everything will be normal on Monday._

Her heart broke at his addendum. He was so willing to put himself out on the line and then live in silence if it made her most comfortable. She couldn't help but love that he referred to their paring as an X-File. How accurate. It was odd, it was unusual, but there was too much evidence it existed for it to be ignored.

"There's no need to investigate this," she said ambiguously. He scared her, it was only fair he got a little back. She almost regretted it at the way his demeanour seemed to shrivel. His face had a pleasant smile on it, as if not to offend her, but it did nothing to conceal his sad disappointment. He was about to get up when she added, "This isn't an X-File. This is a basic fact, Mulder. Much like the grass is green and the sky is blue, of course I also have feelings for you."

She didn't mean to sound like a damn nursery rhyme, but it didn't matter because all she could focus on was the beaming smile on his face and his hearty exhale of relief. He undid the knot of his trench coat and it revealed he was wearing a fancy, elegant black tuxedo. "You really know how to worry a guy, Scully."

" _I_ know how to worry someone? Mulder, I thought you were handing me some sort of resignation, or dragging me across the country on our weekend off," she laughed.

He reminded her they needed to get to their dinner reservations and she quickly changed into a dress that must've been magnetized with Mulder's eyes. He took her to a restaurant far fancier than she knew his g-man budget could afford, and they ordered food they couldn't pronounce from a menu they couldn't read. They laughed and talked like they were teenagers. It was funny, they'd exchanged more words than a hundred novels could contain, but here they were stumbling over what to say and blushing at the dumbest things. It was nice, it was vulnerable, and it was the next step she'd always dreamed of.

It was obvious that neither of them wanted the night to end. The drive from the restaurant was a twenty minute straight shot, but Mulder decided to take the scenic route by traveling the entire outskirts of D.C. It was a cold and it was late, which meant they had the city to themselves. They passed by all the areas of the city they'd imprinted with their memories. The sky looked like a blanket of stars and it just made it all the more romantic.

She looked over at him from the passenger seat, her designed place next to him and watched as he drove around, recollecting memories and stories with a content smile. For one of the first times she could recall, Mulder was unabashedly, boyishly happy, and it was all because of her. How many times had she sat in cars exactly like this, sneaking glances at him and biting back smiles at his casual flirtations. He had one hand on the steering wheel while the other rested limply on the middle console.

He had done so much for her, for them, tonight. Though he was bold with his invitation, he was a but shy throughout their date, as if he didn't want to push her too far. She waited for him to kiss her, or to touch her, but the contact never came.

She thought maybe he was just too nervous to do it, so she raised her hand to his and intertwined their fingers, ecstatic when she felt him jump in surprise, but then hold her back tightly. He'd been in the middle of the story, and he only paused as a joyous, toothy smile interrupted him.

She ran her thumb over the back of his hand as he continued, and she just revealed in these new sensations. They'd held hands before, but never baring their souls along with it. His skin was rough against her own and his fingers dwarfed hers. His palms were a little warm and it secretly thrilled her that she made him nervous. She had never felt more at ease than she did in this moment, perfectly content, perfectly happy, perfectly in love. She didn't know if she could get any happier.

Mulder lifted their joined hands to his mouth and placed a soft, meaningful kiss to the back of her hand, setting them back down as he continued talking.

Okay, so she could get happier.


End file.
